Understanding community responses to tourism gentrification in Seochon Village in South Korea: the significance of parental, social, and cultural factors

Abstract

Drawing on qualitative interviews with residents in Seochon Village, South Korea, this study investigates the conditions by which residents could develop community attachments and could therefore lead to collective action to safeguard the village. The results of this study suggest that the common identities of residents as parents of children in the village; social capital promoted by activities, events, and shared spaces; and the cultural capital of highly educated activists in organizations have interactively played a role in fostering residents’ attachment to Seochon and thus in facilitating collective actions to negotiate with the local Jongno-gu district office.